Preds hope for Festivus Miracle against Stars

DALLAS For those who don’t get the title of this blog and never watched Seinfeld, here is the YouTube clip. Dec. 23 is the made-up holiday of Festivus, which was popularized on the show. And the Predators will have to summon all their strength to achieve the feat of a victory.

Joking aside, tonight’s game against the Stars is important for the Predators. It’s their last game before the two-day Christmas holiday, and it’s important for them to carry their momentum from last night’s improbable win over Columbus.

“You did something sort of special. In a way, that energizes you, but it took a lot of emotion and a lot of physical push to make it happen,” Coach Barry Trotz said. “Your tanks may be a little lower on fuel and you have that adrenaline crash that comes with sport, but you have to refocus.”

Nashville expounded a lot of energy last night to come back from two three-goal deficits to beat Columbus. The Predators believe this didn’t tire them out for tonight.

“It should be momentum,” captain Shea Weber said. “You don’t get much more momentum than from scoring with eight seconds left in a game.”

The Predators will have to contend with Dallas and its team of underrated stars — no pun intended. Jamie Benn has been Dallas’ breakout player with 29 points in 33 games.

“He’s underrated around the league,” Trotz said. “To me he’s a star, and he just hasn’t gotten the notoriety.”